Synthesis and Characterization of PVA/PAMPS Hydrogel Incorporated with Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles for Wound Dressing

Abstract

Burn wounds have the highest rate of disabilities in world. The extensive fluid loss, damage to the tissues, regulating the body temperature and prevention of bacteria perform by the skin are the major challenges. Different polymers incorporated with antibacterial agents have been studied previously to synthesize hydrogels which can enhance the healing efficiency. This study is focused on the fabrication and characterization of polymeric hydrogel composed of Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and Poly (2-Acrylamido-2-Methyl Propane Sulfonic Acid) P(AMPS) has heparin mimicking structure which will enhance the healing efficiency. Zinc Oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) of different shapes (rod, floral and hexagonal) were fabricated and embedded as antibacterial agents to study the healing properties of hydrogel. Furthermore, graphitic carbon nitrate (g-C3N4) was incorporated in the hydrogel to enhance the thermal and mechanical stability of the hydrogel. The maximum tensile strength without ZnO NPs was calculated for “S4” 44 MPa and it increased to 65 MPa when ZnO NPs were incorporated for “S8”. The synthesized ZnO NPs, and nanocomposite hydrogel were confirmed by different characterization techniques i.e. XRD, SEM, UV-vis, and Raman. The size range of ZnO NPs studied using S(T)EM are 10-20nm, 500-600nm and 700-800nm for hexagonal, floral and rod shaped respectively. Antibacterial activity was investigated against E. coli and S. aureus. The maximum zone of inhibition was calculated for “S8” i.e., 24.33mm ± 0.11 and 27.66mm ± 0.20 against E. coli and S. aures respectively. MTT assay for cell viability % was performed. For low concentration and higher amount of ZnO NPs the results were between 80-90% for ZnO hexagonal and rod. The moisture retention capacity (<90%) water vapor transmission rate (27.68-81.95g/m2 h) and swelling ability (140%) results demonstrated that the hydrogel was capable of absorbing large volumes of wound extrudes. Hexagonal shaped ZnO NPs embedded in hydrogel resulted in the best healing efficiency within 9 days as compared to floral and rod shaped. The synthesized particles embedded in the prepared hydrogel demonstrated the potential to be used as antibacterial agent which enhance the healing efficiency and can be used as wound dressing for partial and full thickness excision wounds.